Stamford police make two arrests in city's first homicide of 2015

Published 12:53 pm, Monday, March 16, 2015

Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Stamford Police Chief Jon Fontneau talks about arrests that have been made over the weekend during a press conference in connection to the murder of Antinio Muralles

Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Stamford Police Chief Jon Fontneau talks about arrests that have been made over the weekend during a press conference in connection to the murder of Antinio Muralles

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Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Friends and family incuding Rosa Olivia, center, listen to police talk about the details of an arrest made over the weekend in the stabbing murder of her Uncle Antonio Muralles

Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Friends and family incuding Rosa Olivia, center, listen to police talk about the details of an arrest made over the weekend in the stabbing murder of her Uncle Antonio Muralles

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Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Lt. Diedrich Hohn answers some questions during a press conference announcing arrests made in connection with the stabbing death of Antonio Muralles

Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Lt. Diedrich Hohn answers some questions during a press conference announcing arrests made in connection with the stabbing death of Antonio Muralles

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Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Stamford Police hold a press conference to announce arrests made over the weekend in the stabbing death of Antonio Muralles

Hour Photo/Alex von Kleydorff Stamford Police hold a press conference to announce arrests made over the weekend in the stabbing death of Antonio Muralles

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Over the weekend two arrest warrants and four search warrants were applied for. Stamford P.D. received two warrants for Murder 1st for the persons of 22 Y/O James McLamb, 37 Harding Pl, New Haven Ct, DOB: 03/15/93 and for a 15 Y/O male juvenile who resides in Stamford. (Photo courtesy of Stamford P.D.)

Over the weekend two arrest warrants and four search warrants were applied for. Stamford P.D. received two warrants for Murder 1st for the persons of 22 Y/O James McLamb, 37 Harding Pl, New Haven Ct, DOB:

Last Wednesday, while leaving a highly-trafficked McDonald's restaurant on the corner of Broad and Bedford streets in downtown Stamford, police say a group of three to five men pummeled Muralles after he accidentally spilled his coffee on one of the suspects. He was beaten with a stick, then stabbed in the heart by a 15-year-old male, who fled along with the rest of the group after the vicious, early-evening attack.

On Monday, Stamford police announced the arrests of two suspects on murder charges, including the juvenile who delivered the fatal blow.

"As he stepped out of the McDonald’s restaurant, he bumped into the suspect,” Capt. Richard Conklin said at an afternoon press conference announcing the arrests. “A little coffee was spilled and there was words exchanged. And then without warning he was viciously attacked and stabbed through the heart. A very heinous, tragic incident.”

The investigation, which was led by Stamford police Sgt. Christopher DiCarlo, identified the suspects from video tapes and information reported voluntarily by witnesses, police said. Conklin applauded cooperation from the community with the police’s investigation.

“I think people were sickened by this tragic incident,” Conklin said. "We had a number of people come forward and cooperate, give us the observation, give us a statement, and make available to us whatever technology they had available. And these will play a big role in this case.”

While police did not identify the juvenile because of his status as a minor, the second murder suspect was identified as 22-year-old James McLamb of New Haven. A third suspect is being sought in connection with the case, police said.

McLamb was transported from New Haven to Stamford Sunday while he was in custody in New Haven on an unrelated weapons charge. A $2 million bond was set.

According to Stamford police Lt. Diedrich Hohn, the 15-year-old was located at a residence on Stamford's East Side Monday morning. He was taken into custody and automatically remanded and transported to Bridgeport Juvenile Detention Center, Hohn said.

Mayor David Martin, Consulate General of Guatemala Myriam De la Roca and Muralles’ niece were also present at the press conference.

“He was a nice guy and was just getting a coffee, There was no reason to be attacked this way,” De la Roca said.

Muralles, 52, was a Guatemalan native who worked for Green Mountain Products, Inc. in Norwalk. He had lived in the Stamford area for about 23 years.

A lover of music, Muralles liked to play guitar at family gatherings on weekends, said his niece, Rosa Reyes. Muralles has five sisters and one brother.